Jennifer Wagner – “On Center” at CINQ Dec. 12

CINQ Gallery is proud to present a solo exhibition by Texas based artist, Jennifer Wagner with an opening reception on Saturday, December 12th from 6:00pm to 9:00pm. The exhibition runs through January 14, 2016. The artists will be in attendance in the opening reception; and both the reception and exhibition are free and open to the public.

Manipulating shadow, blur, and reflection is the centerpiece of Jennifer Wagner’s artistic practice. Her mixed media work is a blend of plaster, acrylic paste, and powdered pigment. These varied materials are forced repeatedly through masks, creating marks that often relate more closely to classic impressionism than to modern expressionism. By teasing an active form from this control mechanism, she reveals her visual idiom: “Creating freedom from control and randomness from organization”. Therefore, each form is an alter ego of the artist’s inner self. The patterns used in her work are gleaned from old world geometric decoration, often inspired by design motifs, such as quilts, kaleidoscopes, and mandalas.

The artist’s mark is more accurately described as “built up” versus painted. Layers are applied, many times on both the forward and reverse side of an acrylic sheet or embedded within layers of resin and plaster, giving the work a delicate feel without losing a sense of action. When viewing Wagner’s work, there is visual depth at even the closest distance. What is being observed is light flowing beneath translucent layers, creating faint shadows beneath the upper visual layers. Minimal yet complex in its execution, Jennifer Wagner’s work explores both artistic and emotional content.